Working Less is the Key to All Our Problems

Increasing productivity is the biggest goal of the current generation. Everyone is trying to get more out of their lives and jobs. Employees are working more with the hope of earning additional money. Employers are seeking more work from their staff to gain higher profits.

However, it has recently been found that higher productivity is achieved by reducing or regulating the amount of work an individual does within a day.

Overworking leads to impaired health and serious ailments

Marianna Virtanen of the FInnish Institute of Occupational Health has conducted a number of studies in this regard. Her findings say that overworking causes high levels of stress. This stress accounts for a number of health issues including insomnia, depression, diabetes, heart problems and memory lapses.

A sick workforce is of no use to any company. Therefore, keeping people healthy should be our priority. In order to ensure good health, it is vital that people only handle a practical amount of work.

The room for error increases with long hours, leading to other losses

It is mentioned that working to the point of exhaustion actually causes us to make more mistakes. Overworking causes us to misread physical cues, mismanage our reactions and make errors when performing our day to day tasks.

The errors caused lead to losses in the overall system. As an example, a factory that sells boots can be considered. If an overworked factory worker packs two left boots instead of one right and one left, the result could cost the company both money and reputation.

There is no proof that overworking gives better results

Many studies reveal that overworking does not result in higher productivity. Instead, it says that there is an indirectly proportional relationship between the two factors.

A study done by Erin Reid, a professor of Boston University’s Questrom School of Business, proved that the managers couldn’t distinguish between those who work long hours and those who don’t. There was no finding that those who worked less also accomplished less.

Installing the culture of reduced working hours. Will this work?

A number of countries have successfully reduced their working hours. Sweden leads the way by limiting it to 6 hours. The aim was to get more done in a short period of time. Instead of keeping the employers for long periods every day, they can be given shorter work hours. This will make them more productivity according to the trials done thus far.

How do we make the work less and achieve more culture work?

In order to stick to this strategy, it is vital that everything you do is optimized. Nothing can be done with laziness during your ‘work’ time. At the same time, your free time should be spent leisurely. You can also indulge in an activity that enriches your mind. This way your mind and body get enough space to heal after a long day of work. This also means that the next day will be productive and not full of sleepiness.